How to Self Publish an Audiobook

Written by alasdair stuart

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There are now over 50,000 audio books, and the number continues to rise. (Ryan McVay/Photodisc/Getty Images)

Producing an audio book has become progressively easier over the last few years. The advent of podcasting and the availability of cheap and effective broadcasting equipment have opened the door for authors of any stripe, fiction or nonfiction, to write, publish and market their original audio books. You can create an audio version of your original work for fun or profit.

Skill level:

Moderately Challenging

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Things you need

A microphone

Audacity-Audio Management Software

An iTunes account

A Podiobooks account

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Instructions

1

Download Audacity, a free audio editing software suite. Record a couple of practice episodes. Listen to your recordings with a critical ear and enlist a friend or family member to critique them also. Re-record until the recording meets your standards. This will also give you an opportunity to experiment with extra touches like theme tunes and special effects. Once you're happy with your recordings, export them as MP3s.

2

Once you have your episodes recorded, you'll need to find a web site to host the files. Libsyn and PodBean both offer these services for free, and it will also be possible to download your audio book directly from them. You can also submit the book to iTunes, where your work will be reviewed before publishing to make sure it fits their standards. You can also set the price, if any, you want to sell the book for at this point. Alternately, you can host the files yourself and promote them through your own web site.

3

Once the book is completed, the last thing you should do is promote it. Set up Facebook and Twitter accounts to promote the book and link to other people doing the same thing. Create Web banners and desktop images and give them away on your web site. Get in contact with podcasters and the editors of online magazines who work in the same field to see if they'd be interested in cross-promoting.

Tips and warnings

You should self-publish only your own original material to avoid violating copyright laws.